The Last Wish: A Tribute to the late Kaiser Ryo
by royalfortressmeadow
Summary: Hell Kaiser Ryo Marufuji realizes that he does not want to be forgotten when his time comes. But how will anyone acknowledge him, now that he's gone all bad?


_**The Last Wish (A Tribute to the late Kaiser Ryo)**_

"Oniisan!" a voice called. It sounded so scared and fragile. This voice was so familiar to him… but where did it come from?

"Oniisan!" the voice called again, this time accompanied with the sound of running footsteps and ragged breathing. He looked around him. He was in front of the school where he was once the top student, where he once believed that respecting his opponent was far more important than winning.

"Oniisan!" the voice yelled desperately.

"Sho!" He called, now starting to notice that his little brother sounded a lot more terrified. Although Ryo wouldn't admit it, he cared a lot for his brother. And now that it seemed that he was in trouble, Ryo couldn't help but worry.

Finally, Hell Kaiser had come face to face with him.

"Oniisan…" Sho muttered in a trembling voice. Sho started to cry.

"Are you alright?" Ryo asked him. Sho did not answer. The younger brother went down on his knees, covered his face with his hands, and began to cry even more. To Ryo, it seemed that his brother had gone even blinder than usual- it was as if he didn't see him.

"Humph." Kaiser frowned, realizing that this was taking too much of his precious time. He turned his heel and walked away, leaving his weeping brother without any hesitation.

"_Niisan… where are you?"_

This question made Ryo stop on his tracks. Did his brother not see him standing right in front of him just a minute ago? He faced his brother. "What's wrong with you?" he asked, a little irritated due to the fact that he was related with someone so pathetic.

Again, Sho did not answer.

Ryo walked towards Sho. "Stand up." He said. But his little brother didn't budge. Annoyed, Ryo bent down and grabbed Sho by the collar- but his hand just phased right through.

Hell Kaiser couldn't believe it. What was going on here? "Sho!" Ryo shouted. "Sho, can you hear me?"

As expected, the little brother did not answer. Ryo attempted to hold Sho again, but it was no use. It seemed like the infamous Hell Kaiser did not exist at all.

"Niisan…" Sho muttered, "I tried to tell Aniki and the others that you were missing… but they didn't seem to care… Where are you? Please, tell me you're still here! _I miss my big brother_!"

And he cried even more.

"Sho…" Ryo's voice had softened. This was surprising, even to him. "…Sho, I-"

_Thump thump._

Hell Kaiser gasped, clutching his heart. It was the familiar pain that he began to feel these past few weeks.

_Thump thump.  
_

"Sh-Sho…" he managed to utter despite the suffering. He gripped his heart even tighter.

_Thump thump. Thump thump. Thump thump._

"Argh!" Ryo panted, opening his eyes. It appeared to be _only a dream_… but his heartache didn't go away.

This was unbearable pain to him. Although it happened randomly, it started to become active more frequently.

These heartaches have been appearing after his continual usage of the electrodes. He'd been using these tools every time he dueled, which meant that he was electrocuted as frequent as he dueled. This led to his current fatal heart problem.

He couldn't stand it. He really couldn't. It was so painful that he couldn't even utter another word.

Finally, the pain subsided. Ryo sighed.

That dream he had just now… it was about Sho. It was a dream that made him stop and think about the things that he had been doing.

Sho was crying because it seemed that he would never see his oniisan again. He was grieving because his friends didn't even care about Hell Kaiser anymore, or even the fact that he's gone missing.

In that dream, Sho still cared about him… even _as_ Hell Kaiser.

But that was only a dream. In the real world, was there anyone who still cared about him? It made Ryo stop and wonder… if he'd _really_ been gone missing… would he be missed?

Judging by the frequent heart problems he's been having, Kaiser was pretty sure that his doomsday was drawing near. But will he be remembered? What will he be leaving in this world once he departs?

He couldn't believe it. These thoughts never came across the Kaiser's mind… until tonight.

Kaiser sighed again. After reflecting on his thoughts thoroughly, he had arrived at a firm conclusion:

He had one last wish.

His wish was to tell everyone to forget everything he's done from the time he dueled with Mad Dog and onwards.

It was true that the thought of fame and fortune and victory seemed like music to his ears. But was it all worth it when his friends and family would be deserting him?

Before this night, Ryo used to be fine with that thought. To him, it was alright for him to be alone on his mission to stardom. In fact, there was no darkness in his heart, as he said to his best friend, Fubuki. He only wanted to prove to himself that he wasn't a failure; An Underdog; A Loser.

But now that he felt that his life span was deteriorating at an increasing rate, he knew that he had to do something somehow. He had to make things right. This was, after all, his last chance…

- - -

"Sho, are you alright?" Judai asked, noticing his friend in deep thought. The cyan-haired Ra Yellow student looked up at him.

"Aniki…" he muttered. "… Oniisan is…"

Judai's eyes widened. "Kaiser? What about Kaiser?"

Sho couldn't say a thing. If he did, tears would start to form around his eyes. But then again, he didn't need to say anything to express himself. Sho raised his right hand, revealing a piece of paper he seemed to hold so dearly.

Curious, Judai took it from Sho's hand and began to read.

"_Sho. My end is near. When it is time for me to go, only remember the brother you've always looked up to, and forget everything else. Don't remember the brother who brutally electrocuted you. Out of the remaining time I have left in this world, I want to know that there is still hope for my redemption. I know that I haven't done the nicest things, but I'm not perfect, as everyone used to think. I have my own flaws. So if you're wondering what I've done to myself, I want you to know that that doesn't even matter anymore. What matters is for you to know that your oniisan still exists. I'm asking you one last favor, Sho:  
_

_Don't hate me. Don't detest me. Don't forget me._

_Sho, this isn't just another goodbye… This is my final farewell."_

Silence wafted the air. Judai found himself at a loss for words. He didn't know how to react on this one.

"Oniisan…" Sho muttered, looking up at the sky. He had one wish too; to see his older brother and give him a tight embrace.


End file.
